John Ydstie
John Ydstie has covered the economy, Wall Street, and the Federal Reserve at NPR for nearly three decades. Over the years, NPR has also employed Ydstie's reporting skills to cover major stories like the aftermath of Sept. 11, Hurricane Katrina, the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal, and the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. He was a lead reporter in NPR's coverage of the global financial crisis and the Great Recession, as well as the network's coverage of President Trump's economic policies. Ydstie has also been a guest host on the NPR news programs Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Weekend Edition. Ydstie stepped back from full-time reporting in late 2018, but plans to continue to contribute to NPR through part-time assignments and work on special projects.
During 1991 and 1992, Ydstie was NPR's bureau chief in London. He traveled throughout Europe covering, among other things, the breakup of the Soviet Union and attempts to move Europe toward closer political and economic union. He accompanied U.S. businessmen exploring investment opportunities in Russia as the Soviet Union was crumbling. He was on the scene in The Netherlands when European leaders approved the Maastricht Treaty, which created the European Union.
In August 1990, Ydstie was one of the first reporters on the scene after Saddam Hussein's Iraqi army invaded Kuwait. He accompanied U.S. troops to Saudi Arabia as a member of the Pentagon press pool sent to cover the Iraqi invasion for U.S. media outlets.
Ydstie has been with NPR since 1979. For two years, he was an associate producer responsible for Midwest coverage. In 1982, he became senior editor on NPR's Washington Desk, overseeing coverage of the federal government, American politics, and economics. In 1984, Ydstie joined Morning Edition as the show's senior editor, and later was promoted to the position of executive producer. In 1988, he became NPR's economics correspondent.
During his tenure with NPR, Ydstie has won numerous awards. He was a member of the NPR team that received the George Foster Peabody Award for its coverage of Sept. 11. Ydstie's reporting from Saudi Arabia helped NPR win the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award in 1991 for coverage of the Gulf War. In 2016, Ydstie received a Gerald Loeb Award for financial reporting for his contributions to an NPR series on financial planning.
Prior to joining NPR, Ydstie was a reporter and producer at Minnesota Public Radio. Ydstie is a graduate of Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, where he is now on the Board of Regents. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, summa cum laude, with a major in English literature and a minor in speech communications. Ydstie was born in Minneapolis and grew up in rural North Dakota.
-
Economists say the pickup in wages has been sluggish. One possible reason is that high-earning baby boomers are leaving the workforce. And some people aren't looking to work because wages are too low.
-
The economy staged a comeback from a tepid first quarter, but still fell short of the turbo-charged 3 percent growth rate promised by the Trump administration.
-
As expected, the Federal Reserve says it will hold interest rates in a range between 1 percent and 1.25 percent, while noting job gains have been solid and the labor market continues to strengthen.
-
All major stock indexes — including the Dow — are in record territory, even though the Trump administration has failed to deliver on key legislative promises. But other factors are at play.
-
One hurdle for President Trump's proposed tax cuts is the threat that they'll produce large budget deficits and balloon the U.S. debt. Prominent Republicans are already expressing great concern.
-
Central bank policymakers provided little guidance on the timing of a rate hike. They said slow growth in the first quarter it is likely transitory and that inflation is close to a goal of 2 percent.
-
Nearly 100 days into Trump's presidency, there are still big questions about what his proposed tax overhaul will include — and whether the large changes he had envisioned are even possible.
-
President Trump is beating a path back toward the center on economic policy. Some economists think it may be due to influence from Trump advisers like Gary Cohn and Jared Kushner.
-
Refugees were seen as the answer to Germany's declining population and worker shortage. But the mood has darkened, and those refugees who reach Germany face long waits as they struggle to assimilate.
-
President Trump and House Republicans want to slash the corporate tax rate. But coming up with a plan may be hard because of disagreement over a "border adjustment tax."